Social Isolation May Raise Your Type 2 Diabetes Risk

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Research shows that maintaining friendships and other relationships can help improve our health as we age. Now, a study conducted by researchers from the Maastricht University Medical Centre in the Netherlands suggests that being socially active can even help reduce our risk for developing type 2 diabetes. Results of this study were published in BMC Public Health.

The Dutch researchers analyzed medical information on 2,861 adults between ages 40 and 75 who were involved in the Maastricht Study – a large observational study to examine genetic and environmental risk factors for type 2 diabetes. Of the study participants, 1,623 did not have diabetes, 430 had prediabetes (abnormal blood sugar levels not yet high enough to be classed as diabetes), 111 had a recent diabetes diagnosis, and 697 had a pre-existing type 2 diabetes diagnosis.

According to the researchers, those who did not belong to any clubs or social groups or participate in group activities were 60 percent more likely to have prediabetes. Socially isolated women were 112 percent more likely to have type 2 diabetes, and socially isolated men were 42 percent more likely. Researchers also discovered a significant link between the loss of friends and social acquaintances and the likelihood of developing type 2 diabetes. Each social loss was associated with a 12 percent risk for newly diagnosed diabetes.

FDA Takes a Closer Look at Unproven Homeopathic Treatments

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This week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) proposed a new, risk-based enforcement approach to homeopathic drug products with the highest potential of causing harm to consumers. Since 1988, some prescription and nonprescription drug products labeled as homeopathic have been manufactured and distributed without FDA approval.

The goal of the new proposal is to update the FDA’s current policy for addressing unproven homeopathic treatments marketed for serious diseases and/or medical conditions. According to the agency, the new approach will also cover products labeled “homeopathic” that contain potentially harmful ingredients or that do not meet manufacturing standards.

Under the new approach, homeopathic products that fall outside of certain risk-based categories outlined in the guidelines will remain available to consumers. The new enforcement approach will focus on products with reported safety concerns, those marketed to treat or prevent serious or life-threatening diseases and conditions, those geared towards vulnerable populations, those that do not meet standards under the law, and others.

Egg Allergy? Yes, You Can Get the Flu Shot

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According to the CDC, getting an annual flu vaccine is the single most important step you can take to protect yourself from influenza – a group of viruses that sends hundreds of thousands of Americans to the hospital each year. Because most flu vaccines are manufactured in chicken eggs and may contain trace amounts of egg protein, people with egg allergies had been advised to seek alternative egg-free vaccine options – but that is no longer the case.

A report published in the Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology suggests that flu vaccines are safe – and to be recommended – for everyone over age 6 months, including children who are allergic to eggs. (Egg allergy is rare in adults, according to Matthew Greenhawt, MD, lead author of the report.) These updated guidelines are based on an analysis of 28 studies involving thousands of people with egg allergies, which was conducted by researchers from the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI).

The ACAAI’s recommendation is that it’s no longer necessary for people who are allergic to eggs to see an allergy specialist before getting a flu shot or to receive a special flu shot that doesn’t contain traces of egg protein. Health care providers no longer have to ask patients about egg allergies before administering flu vaccines or observe people with egg allergies longer than normal after they receive a flu shot.